Abstract
This chapter presents an analysis of the themes English Language Teacher Associations (ELTAs) have used for their annual conferences in the past 5 years (2013–2017) and their alignment with research findings and recommendations in the areas where these themes are focused. For this analysis, two big ELTAs were chosen: TESOL International Association and IATEFL. The chapter is divided into three parts. The first part discusses these themes and the research areas they covered. The second part looks at the research basis for these themes and their relevance to both TAs’ research agendas. It also explores the progress and the development in the selections of themes over the last five years. The last part presents a comparative analysis of the two ELTAs’ conference themes.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Brindley, G., Curtis, A., Davidson, F., Duff, P., Scott, S., Tucker, G. R., Bailey, K. M., & Annis, M. R. (2000). TESOL Research Agenda, June 2000. Retrieved from https://www.tesol.org/docs/pdf/tesol-research-agenda-2000.pdf?sfvrsn=4.
Borg, S. (2014). The benefits of attending ELT conferences. ELT Journal, 69(1), 35–46.
Borg, S., Curtis, A., Davison, C., Han, Z. H., Reynolds, D., & Scovel, T. (2004). TESOL Research Agenda, August 2004. Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from https://www.tesol.org/docs/pdf/2937.pdf.
Coombe, C., & Aubrey, J. (2010). The TESOL Arabia conference and its role in the professional development of teachers at institutions of higher education in the United Arab Emirates. Academic Leadership Journal, 8(3). Retrieved from http://scholars.fhsu.edu/alj/vol8/iss3/53/.
Coombe, C., Reynolds, D., Anderson, N.J., Bailey, K., Garton, S., Liu, J., Valdes, G., & Wong, L. (2014). TESOL Research Agenda, August 2014. Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from http://www.tesol.org/docs/pdf/2937.pdf.
Gebhard, J. G., & Oprandy, R. (1999). Language teaching awareness. UK: Cambridge University Press.
Heard, S. (2016). Why do conferences have themes? Scientist sees squirrel. Retrieved from https://scientistseessquirrel.wordpress.com/2016/02/22/why-do-conferences-have-themes/.
International association of teachers of English as a foreign language. (2017, October 20). Retrieved from https://www.iatefl.org/.
Kuchah, K., & Smith, R. (2016). Researching teacher associations. ELT Journal, 70(2), 212–221.
Rixon, S., & Smith, R. (2017). A history of IATEFL. UK: IATEFL.
TESOL International Association. (2017a, September 10). Retrieved from http://www.tesol.org/.
TESOL International Association’s call for participation. (2017b). Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from: http://www.tesol.org/convention2017.
TESOL International Association’s call for participation. (2016). Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from: http://www.tesol.org/convention2016.
TESOL International Association’s call for participation. (2015). Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from: http://www.tesol.org/convention2015.
TESOL International Association’s call for participation. (2014). Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from: http://www.tesol.org/convention2014.
TESOL International Association’s call for participation. (2013). Alexandria, VA: TESOL International Association. Retrieved from: http://www.tesol.org/convention2013.
Trent University’s conference planning guide. (2005). Peterborough, ON: Trent University Conference and Hospitality Services.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Raza, K. (2018). The Alignment of English Language Teacher Association Conference Themes to Research Agendas: An Investigation of TESOL International Association and IATEFL. In: Elsheikh, A., Coombe, C., Effiong, O. (eds) The Role of Language Teacher Associations in Professional Development. Second Language Learning and Teaching. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00967-0_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00967-0_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-00966-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-00967-0
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)